Friday, May 24, 2013

It is Friday already and a Memorial Day weekend to boot, so all have a great weekend and safe also my friends.Dragons, now in some worlds there are dragons and some there are not. In my world they are. Every Tuesday morning a big blue or green one come down our alley disguised as a Trash truck. Our protective fur babies protect us weekly and we have not had one of the dragons land in our yard and we have been in this house for 4 1/2 years. So the fur babies are doing a great job we do believe.Now Dragons are also in the wonderful TV episode, sadly the last season, of MERLIN and one other series GAME OF THRONES. So dragons have been on my mind. When I mow the back yard and about July or so Dragon flies just flit around our yard and me when I mow and I visit with them. I wonder if little fairies are on their backs and what they are doing. You know on the riding lawn mower there is lots of time to wonder and check things out that happen in the yard if you are aware of it. Remember the frogs that we had and the fur babies would dig them up and play with them. Well on their side it was playing not sure what the frog thought. They never killed one though.So the dragon flies were the inspiration of this next fairy. I am not sure if I am finished yet, I will let it sit a few days and see what else inspires me to create on this piece of art. Seems like I have been bitten by the fairies right now. In fact I am working on one right now, had done her wings a light purple and when I went to get the paint to work on her hair and started painting I had picked up the wrong color, was going to use dark brown but purple seem to have won it's way. So purple it is, the light in here in the afternoons is not the best. Now I sketched her like the others during a baseball game watching our Texas Rangers play. I mean they have 162 games for a regular season so should get a lot of these gals sketched. Here is how she started out. I loved her and I wasn't sure how or what the background was going to be. I was patient and just let it develop.

I started with colored pencils and then went to the water color crayons and then thought why not some beads. You know I like beads on most anything. So the dragon flies and her head piece got beads.

I worked on her face and some water color paint got on her face so gesso to the rescue to save it.

When I working on her hair I kept picking up the green pencils and finally gave in the used it so guess the green is the reflection of what is around her. I am not sure if I am finished with her yet.

Her face is not what I started with, but she is sweet none the less. Maybe the other fairy will emerge in another painting. We will see.

Thanks for looking and coming to see what is going on in my world today.

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Last year, oh my time does fly by doesn't it, I took a series of lessons or inspirations in Life Book 2012. . One was from Ady Almanza who lives in Germany. She totally got me hooked on her Dolls. Now these aren't the dolls of yester year when you make them have voices and pretend they are you baby dolls. Oh I can remember years, yes years ago when I had this baby doll I bought with my own allowance of what maybe $2 saved up. I ran to the store ( well mother drove me there and I ran in ) and purchased this rubbery baby doll. She had painted molded hair and a diaper was her only clothing but I had fallen in love with her. I had a little friend who was my playing buddy ( I am not sure where we lived at the time ) and we made our outside house and rooms with cinder block and played all summer with the dolls and the pretend food out of mud, rocks and sticks. We set up house under a big tree and just certainly kept ourselves occupied for hours at a time.

This was one of the Dolls I drew and painted with acrylic. Love those big eyes. Well, Ady is doing some dolls now on her online classes, love those things. You can go to class in your jammies and look like you could scare anyone if you saw them. Anyway she is giving a class in pastels. The first one is in black and white and I have signed up for it. I am so rusty with my pastels so I just wanted to play.

Here are some of my pastels and they are rusty from nearly 30 years of non use. Thank goodness I didn't take some people's advise and sell them. Nope under a bed safe and sound they lived and had two moves under their belts. They are calling my name. When I first pulled them out I was bored with doing a regular picture with them but now Ady has given me new blood to play with them.

Here are her dolls for the first class. Love the hair, guess cause I was not blessed with hair like that. Ya think?

Friday, May 17, 2013

I thought you might like an update on Daisy, the Dove who rode thru the horrible wind storm protecting her nest. Well I did get close enough with out scaring her, I hope, and the babies to get a quick pic of them. She and babies sat still as can be. Now I have wondered what she tells them to be so still? Most little birds when their Momma's are not or are close by are so noisy and wiggle around but not these two. Still as can be. So no more suspense for you ------- Here is Daisy and her two babies:

I hope you can see their little heads up front. Maybe they were posing for me. I was going to get a ladder but thought better of it. I didn't want to give the Momma a heart attack me being to close.

There you go I hope you enjoyed seeing her and will try and get some as they get larger.

Now you know I have discussed Mother Nature lately. I am drawing my fairies at night and coloring on them also while watching our Texas Rangers play ball. When I first sketched this next fairy I thought I may make just a young one and see where she goes. Now Hubby says he can see them transform as I sit next to him in our comfy chairs. I never know where they take me when I create them.

I sketch them then this one I thought I would do the background differently than I have been doing. So glue, aka Modge Podge and scissors and tearing I went to work. Found some napkins some of my friends sent me and used portions of those. I bought some masking fluid the other day to help protect my drawings while I get background on and developing the whole art piece.

I did the background and then didn't like her nose or lips in the latter part of the work and use some Gesso and covered them up. Thanks Gesso for covering what I don't like. I then went to work on her. Unfortunately I was trying some different paper I had, don't' use it again Annette for all I do to the paper it did not hold up well. My girl looked like she had been in a knife fight so I had to use my noggin and figure out what to do for her.

I just kept playing and adding and drawing and this is what I came up with. I do believe it is Mother Nature. Or a fairy with a Revlon makeup ad of years ago but I like to think this is Mother Nature. She is stern, strong and does have a kind heart. For some reason I made her a red head, I used ochre and purple and this is what I came up with. I was afraid to work on her face to much more the poor paper was starting to ball up. Maybe she would have leprosy by time I finished with that. A knife fight would have been bad enough. Now this is why I put the heart on her cheek. A knife fight wound.

Here are the steps I went thru to finish off the piece. She is older and wiser than the other fairies I have created. I just had to do a close up of the knife wound and her heart. Of course glitter had to be used somewhere.

There you go what I created this last few days. I have two others drawn but on good heavy watercolor paper and will see where they take me and which fairy appears.

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

We saw Daisy's babies today. Remember the birdie I took a pic of hanging on for dear life on the limb of a tree? Today Hubby said come see the babies and I knew what he was talking about. Their little heads popping out of the nest and not moving a muscle. I didn't take pics yet they blend in perfectly with the nest and limb colors but promise will try and get them soon. There were two of them. So sweet and just starting out life and they seem to know so much when they are born don't they? Built into them before born. There are some mocking birds that have set up house in the pine trees we planted in the back. The other day I saw Libby , the bigger fluffy fur baby , running as hard as she could to the house. Now this is not new because I have seen her do this when we open the door and they know it is time to eat. A Mocking bird was diving and swooping down and around and over that poor baby. Terrified at her own shadow, remember we broke her out of the dog pound and really don't know her history, she had those ears back and eyes were big running fast. Well the next day we say a little bird with our binoculars in one of the pine trees. I guess Miss Jewel, our short legged personality plus fur baby, running as hard as she could. Yep said momma bird was giving Jewel the once over also. So we are now proud humans of baby Mocking birds and Doves. Probably some other birds around here also. in one tree we found three nests that had fallen to the ground in the front of the house. Even had Libby hair in it. There you go the scoop of the birds.Now the other day when I wrote about Daisy I was wishing they had some kind of protector like a fairy or some little thing like that. One of God's helpers. So I got my pencils out and just made a fairy of the birds. So with pastel pencils and Prisma colored pencils in hand I played while watching a baseball game. Both are pretty good media to sit in a big comfy chair and play while watching our Texas Rangers hopefully win. We were watching an NCIS L. A. and saw a background arch on it so Hubby stopped the programs for me and I sketched it quickly. Here you go my Bird Fairy, protector of our feathered friends. Almost forgot to leave room for the wings and the blue on the right side is part of a chair I photo in, but other than that and a few swirls in acrylic she is done. I think.

Thanks for stopping by and seeing what is going on in my world today. OXOXOX Annette

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Now I realize this is one odd title but trust me it all ties together. The other day while visiting with my sweet Sister In Law we somehow got on the subject of pecans. I know pecans --but trust me it will make sense. She said she had a tree, I think one in the back yard that produced the pecans but they were so tiny and not good for anything. Now I wonder if a good all American squirrel thought about how large or small a nut is. It is food-grub to them I would think. Just a smorgasbord to them. Can't you see the little squirrels gathering them up and just so excited and chattering amongst themselves-we have nuts!!!! Well I then told she and hubby about when we lived in Midland the first time we had two China Berry Trees in the front yard. Now if you have ever met one of these things they are beautiful in leaves and shape and give lots of wonderful shade in the hot West Texas sun. The trees have one nasty side effect though------yep you guessed it, a little hard as a rock "berry" not just a few but I think a million or so for each tree.Well I was raking the little things up one day and some kids walked by and we discussed the "berries" from the tree. I told them I bet they would be good to have wars with. Sort of like the snowball fights you have when it snows. Well by the time it was over I had them convinced it would be a blast and they ran home and got some sacks and came and picked up nearly everyone of them. I did help them. BUT the china berries were gone-poof-disappeared. Hubby and sister in law and I all just laughed because I pulled a Huck Fin "trick" when he got everyone to paint his fence for him-I got the kids to pick up the china berries for me. I bet they did have fun with their war.After visiting on the phone I thought hummmmm this would be a wonderful inspiration for a fairy, being as I have been painting them lately. Now her color is a tad bright but here, but not in the reals and truels of life. She is picking berries and wondering I would think- do I eat these and have a picinic or have war with the other fairies and gnomes ? I got the pose idea from one of the catalogs you get in the mail but this I promise is not what the model was doing or even looked like this and had on something else. BUT I sort of used the pose. Can't see hubby posing for me while drawing this but he would if I asked him to. He is indeed a good sport and supporter of my art.

There you go how I got my inspiration for this flaming red haired fairy. I have flat been on a roll with drawing them. What are you doing with them you may or may not ask? Well has been suggested maybe cards? I don't know .

Sunday, May 5, 2013

Here we go the start to another week. No wind just sun and loving it. What a treat for us all including Daisy. Now I did comment on the wind going on the other day and a sweet momma dove hanging on for dear life. My new cousin Juanita named her for me. Daisy. Today Daisy was facing another direction. When we looked yesterday she was in the same direction of nest sitting and thought oh no is she dead after all the limb flopping going on? Her head was held up high so we thought she is fine. Today with body direction changed all is good in Dove Ville at the Graves home. I think all will be well with her now. The Daddy sits on top of the fireplace chimney and does his little song they do. So peaceful sounding and probably comforting to Daisy. Now she is on the North side of the tree, and it is sort of leaf bare so to speak being as the North side is getting so pelted lately. Most of those leaves have been cleaned up off of the patio.

Here she is Daisy, big eyed and still and trying to hide from all predators. She is a ways up and we really had to look to find the nest.

Now I have been stretching my "wings" lately and thinking of an inspiration of a fairy doing what fairies do. so "Daisy" was my inspiration. Sitting in a tree on a sunny day looking over her domain.

The tree fairy. I am going to scan her, if I can get the scanner to work : ), then do an Art Nuevo border around some or all of the piece, then on another scan and printed of her do some collage type goodies on her. Just playing but leaving the original piece safe and sound. She does look more at ease than Daisy does I do have to comment on that.

This is done on the back of a defunk printed piece I did years ago, watercolor, well watercolor pencils and crayons is all I have of that media but work for me. So acrylic and pastel pencils and the colored pencils were used. I have looked and a lot of fairies have butterfly type wings so wanted to do something a little different. She is a West Texas fairy after all.

There you go and thanks for stopping by and seeing what is going on in my world today.

Thursday, May 2, 2013

Happy May, it is warm and the flowers are blooming and pretty. SOMEWHERE!!!!!

I am ready to call UNCLE to Mother Nature, the cold front is here again!!!! AGAIN !!!! My goodness not only are we getting pelted but looks like the whole North and East part of the US is getting the same storm. Now I don't know when they started naming the storms and giving they some clout but when they got to Zeus I thought is it over? Oh no, now they started all over with the A's.

We have taken plants out of the tropical hide a way and now put them back-sort of. I know they feel like little vagabonds traveling back and forth. But it is May. Hubby said he can remember his parents saying they remembered having snow in May years ago.

There is a sweet little young Dove in the tree hanging on with all claws and her nest. The last wind laden storm she lost her tiny eggs but we noticed a couple of days ago when it was a nice 91 ish there she was sitting on the nest. This morning that sweet little thing is still hanging on. I wonder if birds get sea sick? the nest is in the thin limbed part of the tree and just flopping around like a fish out of water. I just checked and I know her eyes area probably giant size by now with fear and thinking she is green at the gills from being flopped around so much. I asked hubby is there anything we can do? But I guess we have to let Mother Nature run it's course with them

Well Baseball is going on, and again I am doing art and sewing while watching. I did this little gal the other night. Just the sketch then ran her, well not her but the pic thru the copy machine and the printed her off on some watercolor type paper. ( Finally getting smart about that ) So I have been playing the last couple of nights with pastel and colored pencils and came up with this. This morning I added a little acrylic here and there and deemed her finished. I am thinking I may not do any just head and shoulders for a while, maybe and now concentrate on them with bodies and up in trees and what fairies do. Stretching my wings in fairy world I guess you would say. I know everyone and their dogs do fairies but they are calling to me right now so I will actually listen. MAYBE!!!

Here you go, they are beginning to all look alike so I figure that is my cue to start doing something else with them. I do have to work larger though if I add bodies. My eyes don't think will let me go smaller and with a body also. I did pass the eye test at the drivers license though so they should be hunkie dorie. Well thank you for stopping by and seeing what is going on in my world today. XOXOOX Annette

In a medium mixing bowl combine flour, sugar ,cinnamon, baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cut in butter or margarine till pieces are the size of small peas. Make a well in the center. Combine the egg and the 1/4 cup milk; add all at once to dry mixture. Stir till moistened. On a lightly floured surface roll dough to 1/8 inch thickness. Cut into 2 inch circles or flowers with cookie cutter. Place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 8-10 minutes or till light brown on the bottom. Cool on a wire rack. Place about 1/2 tespoon raspberry jam on the bottom of 1 round, top with another round. Repeat with remaining cookies.

In a small mixing bowl stir together powdered sugar, vanilla, and enough milk to make of glazing consistency. spread top of each cookie with some of the glaze. For holly berries, while icing is still wet, drop 2 or 3 cinnamon candies on each cookie. Allow icing to dry. Using a small paintbrush, paint several holly leaves and a stem on each cookie with the green food coloring. Makes 54 single cookies.

These also freeze well, either just the cookies or the whole decorated thing. Sometimes the red hot colors may run after frozen but the cookies prettier when first done. But they still get eaten. Sometimes I freeze and then decorate just before Santa comes to visit.

Melt caramel candy, water and margarine in double boiler. Mix in nuts and drop by tablespoon on buttered tray to cool. ( sometimes I put in frig to cool ) When cool, drop patties in mixture of melted chips and parafine and shortneing then put back on tray to cool. Can also freeze when finished or freeze the caramel stuff and then when ready to eat just dip in the chocolate. A special note, then your family can sneek into the the freezer and eat frozen. I dip with the pattie on a fork and then use a toothpick to scrape off the dripping bottoms, did have a fancy thingie for that but was a pain to mess with. Fork and toothpick work fine.

Micro wave version

Microwave caramels 1 -2 minutes till start melting, may take longer but keep an eye on the because they will burn. Stir and add the milk, and microwaves a few more minutes 2 or so. Stir every 30 second and then add the nuts into the melted caramels.

For dipping chocolate, melt the chocolate and parafin and 1 T. shortening for 3-4 minutes til melted. Sometimes I then take the bowl with melted chocolate out and then keep melting the parafine and then pour it into the rest of melted chocolate and parafine. It all doesn't melt at the same time. This just keeps it from burning. Dip as above.

Now remember just doing in the microwave doesn't take out the calories.